This Rick and Morty Fan Theory Suggests Season 3 Isn't Over Yet

After season three's fun finale, Rick and Morty fans were a little... upset. Not that the episode was especially bad per se, but a lot of folks had gotten it into their heads that the episode would tie up or at least advance some plot threads involving Evil Morty or Phoenix Person. Now, this show on the whole typically keeps storylines self-contained from episode-to-episode, but after the big season two cliffhanger and the Evil Morty reveal earlier this season, you can see why expectations were high on the plot front.

But some fans aren't ready to be underwhelmed quite yet. Almost immediately after the finale aired, a theory started floating around that we might have at least one more episode left in season three. I know, I know, it sounds like these poor fans are in hardcore denial, but... they make a pretty damned convincing case.

Specifically, the theory suggests that we'll be getting a secret Christmas episode. Much of the conspiracy revolves around Mr. Poopybutthole's appearance after the credits in this week's finale.

The Santa namedrop is suspicious but not exactly a smoking gun -- until you consider how very literal Mr. Poopybutthole has been in the past when it comes to the show's hiatus. Remember, at the end of season two, Mr. Poopybutthole appeared after the cliffhanger and said this:

As it turns out, the time from the season two finale to the season three premiere was 1 year, 5 months and 28 days. That's just two days off from a year and a half. If Mr. Poopybutthole is being as literal for this week's finale as he was for season two, we might actually see him with a genuine Santa beard as soon as this Christmas.

Christmas Eve, by the way, is a Sunday this year. As in, the usual airdate of new Rick and Morty episodes. One of the only exceptions was the season three premiere, which shocked everyone by airing on April Fools' Day. That surprise reveal wasn't even the only time the show pulled some tricky shenanigans this season. The previews for "The Ricklantis Mixup" made it look as though we were getting an Atlantis-themed episode, when really we got an incredible series of intertwining plot threads in the Citadel of Ricks.

So we have a crew that has established themselves as more than willing to mess with fans. And less than two weeks ago, one of the writers of the show appeared on a behind-the-scenes video wearing this sweater:

Maybe Ryan Ridley was interviewed 10 months ago and the clips are only surfacing now, or maybe he just thought it would be funny to wear a Christmas sweater in the off-season. Or maybe there's shenangians afoot.

If it really does mean nothing, there are still a couple dangling threads that would tie off awful clean should there be more to this season. For one, season three was supposed to get 14 episodes before the count was cut down to 10. That sort of thing does happen to shows from time to time, especially when it comes to showrunners who are self-admitted perfectionists. But there's still the odd comment from co-creator Dan Harmon during a recent video from Film Theory, in which he brushes off a question about Evil Morty by directing the audience to the date and time of the finale (which didn't contain Evil Morty at all).

Unless... Evil Morty somehow switched places with our Morty at some point. If that's the case, this theory is going to need a lot more corkboard, push pins and hell of a lot of red yarn to tie this all together.

What do you think? Are we in for more Rick and Morty sooner than later? Or is everyone still stuck in the first stage of grief?